China sees electric vehicle sales boom, while gasoline cars sink

Sales of all types of electric vehicles increased by more than one 40% in China last year, while those of gasoline cars plummetedaccording to sector data. Last year they sold 31.4 million vehicles in the world’s largest market by sales, 4.5% more than the previous year, according to the Chinese Association of Automobile Manufacturers. Sales growth exceeded production growth, which increased by 3.7%.

The chinese exports of passenger cars increased almost 20% in 2024, up to almost five million vehicles. Of that figure, exports of what China calls “new energy vehicles,” including electric vehicles Battery vehicles, fuel cell vehicles and plug-in hybrids (electric vehicles with a small gasoline engine to support the batteries) reached 1.28 million. This represents an increase of 6.7% compared to 2023.

Exchanges are an incentive

In the domestic market, passenger car sales rose 13.6% in December, driven in part by trade-in rebates, raising total passenger car sales in China 3.1% on the year, to 22.6 millions. The traditional vehicle sales gasoline and diesel fell 17% in 2024from 14 million to 11.6 million. They accounted for 51% of total new car sales.

The plug-in hybrids they experienced the faster growth in 2024, attracting a second generation of EV buyers who are nervous about purchasing pure electric models or looking for the greater range that hybrids can provide.

The fall in demand for fuel cars has meant a hard blow for foreign manufacturers such as Volkswagen AG and Nissan Motor Corp, which for years have counted on strong demand in China to increase their profits.

Therefore, they are rushing to develop electric vehicles for the Chinese market. Honda and Nissan have recently announced their intention to mergein part to meet the challenge from Chinese electric vehicle manufacturers. The rapid expansion of electric vehicle sales in China contrasts with that in the United States and Europe, where growth has slowed.